Mrs. Christel Allen To All Instructors

Mrs. Allen has always enjoyed science which led to her completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Secondary Education with a minor in Chemistry.  Her degree was heavy in lab classes and included a senior honors research project and presentation on the socialization patterns of bottlenose dolphins at a nearby aquarium. Upon completing her degree, she worked as a science teacher in a public, medical magnet high school.  During that time, she piloted the school’s AP Chemistry program, created and taught a course in microbiology and genetics, and taught freshmen biology.

After that experience, she went on to obtain her master’s degree in marine biology.  These classes included marine mammal studies, marine mammal stranding training, necropsies of marine mammals, research methods, and oceanography. Her degree culminated in a thesis on the reproductive genetics of the North Atlantic Right Whale population.

Her next season of life was to begin a family.  During that season, she and her husband decided to homeschool their children.  Mrs. Allen spent 17 years on that process, covering classes from pre-K through high school. This homeschool journey was rich in science and included experiments, nature explorations, baking soda/vinegar rockets and volcanoes, bug collections, dissections, and many other options to encourage exploring the surrounding environment. Mrs. Allen also taught lab classes for one of her children and two other homeschool students in Biology and Chemistry.

Her experience in both public and homeschool teaching make her a perfect blend for teaching at Highland Academy.  Mrs. Allen understands that high school should be a place where students are challenged enough to prepare them for college as a possible option. It is also a place for students to learn and explore different sciences before facing the rigors of college work.  Providing this experience in a way that challenges students to grow both in their objective analysis skills and their pure love for science is Mrs. Allen’s teaching desire. 

Current Classes
Chemistry (Continued) – (open)
Physical Science (Continued) – (open)